1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a mechanism for harvesting tobacco plants in slotted rails.
2. Background Art
Automated tobacco harvesters, such as the one developed by the present inventors and disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,813,216 (the '216 patent), entitled Apparatus and Method for Automated Tobacco Harvesting, issued on Mar. 21, 1989, have improved on the method of manually harvesting tobacco plants. The harvester described in the '216 patent is designed so as to carefully handle and manipulate the burley plants and thus reduce leaf losses during cutting and storing to a level previously only achievable by the most skilled manual laborers. The harvester is fully mechanized. It includes a system for cutting the plants adjacent the ground. The plants are then conveyed upwardly and inverted through 180 degrees so that the leaves of the plants fall naturally along the stalks. The stalks of the plants are then notched for suspension on a series of slotted tubes in a rectangular curing frame. A suitable curing frame is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,790,334 (the '334 patent), issued Dec. 13, 1988, also to the present inventors.
The cost of the frames disclosed in the '334 patent, however, can be prohibitive for most tobacco growers. Further, a specialized mechanized vehicle for handling the frames is typically required, adding to the cost. Lastly, debris from the plants being notched at the notching mechanism can interrupt the harvester.
Thus, there is a need for a harvesting mechanism that overcomes these needs and others by suspending tobacco plants in individual rails not requiring a supporting frame, by being able to use any readily available power source, such as a tractor, and by having a notching mechanism that allows any debris to be readily removed.